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East Coast Residents Recall Snow Day Agendas During Historic Blizzard

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

Millions of people were affected by the snowstorm, and it seems each of them has a story to tell. This was the first snow for Marina Toft, a Californian who now lives in Brooklyn. She sent in this recording from the middle of the night Friday as the storm settled in.

MARINA TOFT: I just got woken up by the wind for, I think, the third time tonight. I keep hearing crashing noises. And it's not magical, this is not fun. I do not like snow as much as I thought I did. I have a job interview tomorrow, and I don't know if I'm just being delicate and Californian and people actually go to stuff during things like this, but I don't really want to go outside even to get a job.

ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST:

Luckily, Marina Toft didn't have to. Her interview was rescheduled, which made her feel, as she wrote to us, like she won a game of blizzard chicken. Not everybody was afraid of the snow, but many did heed the government's call to stay in on Saturday. For some, like Chris Miller in Washington, D.C., it was a chance to catch up on some important things.

CHRIS MILLER: Lots of Netflix, so "Narcos," "Chelsea Does," some other Netflix series. So I didn't feel guilty about it.

CORNISH: And then Sunday, the forced hibernation was over. The sun came out and so did Steven Johnson.

STEVEN JOHNSON: I think I met more of my neighbors in the last 24 hours than I met in the last six months. It's been wonderful. We were playing football out in the snow, we've been shoveling, we've been drinking. It's been a good time.

SIEGEL: Others used the opportunity to learn new skills. Alice Meder could have walked around her D.C. neighborhood, but she decided to bike. For a Brazilian, it was a new experience.

ALICE MEDER: It's like running with tennis shoes on ice, so you keep slipping, and then your wheel keeps spinning, and then you keep falling off and on. But when you see the asphalt or a little bit of snow, you get that traction and you think, finally.

CORNISH: Many more in Washington went for more typical snow day activities - sledding, building snowmen, even skiing. Wole Moses planned for a traditional treat.

WOLE MOSES: I think it's my first snowball fight since I was a kid, so I'm really looking forward to letting some of the inner child out of me.

SIEGEL: Whether your inner child came out to play or you went out to play with your children, we hope that you were able to put the shovel down and enjoy the snowy weekend. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

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